First of all I saw great vases, rich with ornament and figures; then sepulchral marbles, carved more exquisitely than the most beautiful I had ever known.

The vision grew in extent, in multiplicity of detail; presently I was regarding scenes of ancient life--thronged streets, processions triumphal or religious, halls of feasting, fields of battle.

What most impressed me at the time was the marvellously bright yet delicate colouring of everything I saw.

I can give no idea in words of the pure radiance which shone from every object, which illumined every scene.

More remarkable, when I thought of it next day, was the minute finish of these pictures, the definiteness of every point on which my eye fell.